Lump-sugar-packing machine



G. IACOBITTI.

LUMP SUGAR PACKING WUXCHINE.V

APPLICATION FILED ocT. 7, 1920.

6 SHEETS-SHEET l.

TORNEY G. IACBIITI.

LUMP SUGAR PACKING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 7. 1920.

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G. IACOBITTI.

Luv/1P SUGAR PACKING MACHINE.

APPLlCATlON FILED OCT. 7. 1920.

1.3?79775. Patented May M. im.

G. IACOBITTI.

LUNIP SUGAR PACKING MACHINE.

FQ n m APPLICATION FILED OCT-7,1920.

G. IACOBIITI.

LUNIP SUGAR PACKING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 7. I920.

Patented May IIUI, 1921,

6 SHEEIS-SHEET 5.

INVENTOR.

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G. IACOBITTI.

LUNIP SUGAR PACKING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 7. 1920. L3?7775 Patented May M1921.

6 SHEEIS-SHEET 6..

iro STATES oies.

LUMP-B'UGAR-PACKING MACHN.

peelcation of Letters Patent.

Patented May ttl?, 1921.

Application led October 7, 19120. @arial No. elea.

To all whom t may concern.' lBe it known that l, GIUSEPPE llAoonrr'rI, a citizen of the United States, residing at Crockett, in the county of Contra Costa, State of California, have invented a new and useful Lump-Sugar-Packing Machine, of which the following is a specification, in such full and clear terms as will enable those skilled in the art to construct and use the same.

rThis invention relates to a lump sugar packing machine and its object is to so ar range assorted cubes of sugar as to permit them to be packed in a 'regular arrangement in cartons of a given size, automatically.

It will be understood by those skilled in the art that it is customary to pack cube sugar vin small cartons about twelve lumps long by live lumps wide and four lumps high, althou h, of course, large amounts might be pac ed in the cartons, or different amounts if that was desirable by changing the size and arrangement of the parts of the machine.

The present machine, however, has been constructed to pack a carton twelve lumps long by live lumps wide and four lumps ii h.

' nother object of the invention is to automatically place the cartons in position in the machine and to automatically remove them therefrom after they have been filled.

Another object of the invention is to provide means whereby the sugar lumps will be arranged in contmuous lines and fed to a suitable chute for final arrangement and placing in the boxes without the interven-l tion of manual effort.

Other objects of the invention will appear as the description proceeds.

An embodiment of the invention is shown in the accompanying drawings in which the same reference numeral is applied to the same portion throughout, but l am aware that there may be modifications thereof.

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the complete machine.

chine showing the plunger operating mechanism.

Fig. 5 is an end View of the complete niachine looking from the ri ht Fig. 1.

Fig. 6 is an end view of the complete machlne looking from the left of Fig. 1.

Fig. 7 is an enlarged sectional View of the lump sugar retarding mechanism.

Fig. 8 is a side elevation showing one of the retarding rods and a portion of the feeding chute.

Fhe machine has a frame work consisting of eight posts 1 to 8 inclusive, the posts 1, 2and 5, 6 being connected together by means of a floor 9, while the posts 3, 4 and 7, 8 are connected by means of a floor 10.

Stringers 11 to 16 inclusive extend lonl gitudinally of the machine and connect the posts 1 to 8 inclusive near the floor line.

ongitudinally extending stringers 17 and 18 connect the posts 3, 4 and 7, 8 respectively to provide bearings for the support of shafts 19 and 20.

These shafts 19 and 2O are journaled in bearings 21, 22 and 23 and 24 respectively. Slidable on the floor 10 is a plunger 25, this plunger is operated by means of two links 26 and 27 which are connected to two cranks 28 and 29 carried by a shaft 3() journaled in bearings 31 and 32, carried by the posts 4 'and 8.

Movable vertically between the 'posts 2, 6 and 3, 7 is a plunger 33. This plunger has a pin 34 extending therethrough which forms trunnions at its opposite ends for connection With two slotted levers 35 and 36. rll`hese levers are carried by the ends of the shafts 19 and said levers are also slotted at opposite ends to receive pins 38 and 39 on the gears 40 and 41, said gears being secured to the shaft 20.

Above the plunger 25 the posts 1, 4 and 5, 8 are connected by means of the longitudinal stringers 42 to 47 inclusive. rlhese stringers afford a sppport for the journal boxes carrying the shafts 48 to 55 inclusive and each of these shafts has a drum 56 thereon. Four belts 57 to 60 inclusive pass around the rollers 56 and form the preliminary arranging means for the sugar cubes. These belts are fed from four chutes 61 t0 (it inclusive and move in such a direction as to brin the sugar cubes from the trough to- War the center of the machine.

Each belt is provided with twelve arranging fingers, to 77 inclusive, which fingers.

are spread somewhat wider apart at their beginnin than they are at their terminating parts in order to assist in arranging the sugar cubes. A

These fingers are supported adjacent each of the belts 57 to 60 inclusive by means of two posts 78 to 79, each finger having a plate 80 extending upwardly therefrom to a cross bar 81, extending across from the posts 78 to the osts 79.

T e construction of the fingers for each conveyer belt is identicalwith the other one so that the same numeral reference 1s applied in both instances.

The chute 63 is supported on a frame 82 carried by the arm o the machine while the chutes 6l, 62 and 64 are supported from any suitable portion of the machine or building in which the machine isinstalled.

At the discharge end of the machine and in back of the chute 62 there are suitable an le plates 84 and 85 which are connected tot e angle plates' 86 and 87 by suitable diagonal braces 88 and 89 at each side of the machine to form a vertical extending chute for the pile of cartons C.

At the discharge end of the floor 9 there is a shaft'90 which supports a air of L-shaped plates 91 and 92 connecte together by a wider plate 93 to form the holding receptacle for the cartons while they are bein filled.

In order to prevent the cartons om'falling out of the chute in which they are piled, a lever 94 is pivotally connected to the lower portion of the angle plate 84, while at the upper end of the L-shaped late 92 there is a lug 95 which is so shape as to move the point 96 free from the cartons when the plate 93 is moved up to the position shown in Fig.

4-3 ready to receive another carton.

The carton receiving plate 93 is normally held in position indicated in Fig. 1 by means of two spiral springs 96 and 97 and by means of two interrupted fgears 98 and 99, each of which has a smooth portion 100 slidable on the smooth portion of the rod. 101 and 102. When the rod moves to the left Fig. 1 there v will be no. tendency to rotate either of the gears 98 and 99, but when said rod is moved to the right, that the carton holding plate will be turned downwardl 90 degrees and ermit the filled cartons to lie removed thererom as will be later explained.

The rods 101 and 102 are turned at a right angle at their opposite ends and bolted to the plunger 25 as indicated at 103.

Mounted vertically above the plunger 33 are 48 individual chutes in two short series.

105 and 106 and in two, longer series 107 and 198.. 'These hutes are arranged to be u slightly'lai'ger in cross sections at their upper ends than at their lower ends where they fit the sugar cubes as nearly as possible to enable them to be delivered to the plunger 33 as close together as possible and the two lower series of chutes 105 and 106 receive sugar cubes from the two lower belts 57 and 58 while the two longer chutes 107 and 108 receive the sugar cubes from the two upper belts 59 and 60.

In order to prevent the su ar cubes from falling out of the vertical c utes in which they are initially connected in the desired arrangement there are three shafts 110, 111 and 112, the Shafts 110 and 112 are each provided with light springs 113 and 114, one for each pile of sugar lumps in the outer tubes 105 and 106.

The springs 113 and 114 bear upon the lowermost series of lumps in the tubes. The center shaft 111 has two series of springs 115 and 116, one set of which bears upon the lowermost lump in the tube 107, while the other set bears upon the upper portion of the lowermost lump in the tubes 108.

The shafts 110 and 112'inclusive are provided with small gears 117, 118 and 119 which are in mesh with teeth on a rack bar 120. The rack bar 120 is slidable in two bearings 121 and 122 at the upper edge of the rail 45 and a spring 123 bears on said rack bar .and holds it in one position or the other for a purpose presently to be explained. The post 6 pivotally supports an upwardly extending slotted lever 124. The slot at the upper end of this lever en ages a pin 125 carried bythe rack bar 120, w ile the lower end of this lever is provided with a projecting lug 126 which may Contact with 'a roller 127 on the plunger 33, the objectbeing to rotate the shafts 110 to 112 inclusive to-cause the springs carried thereby to engage or disengage the sugar lumps in the chutes 105 to 108 inclusive.

Above the pivot points of the lev'er 124 there is a lug 128 which the roller 127 engages when the plunger 33 is pushed up.

The result of the construction just outlined is that when the plunger 33 `is pushed up the roller carried thereby will engage the lug 128, this will rotate the shafts 110 and 112 sufiiciently to cause the disengagement of the light springs carried thereby from the bottom sugar lump. The plunger will then descend and permit the pile of sugar lumps to slide out of the tubes until the roller 127.

Lawa/7e collected after they leave the chutes, is restricted by twoplates 130 and 13 1. rlhese plates are formed at 132 and 133 to move the pile of sugar lumps endwise toward each other the distance they may be separated upon their discharge from the vertical chutes 105 to 108 inclusive and in order to hold the sugar lumps 'in alinement there is a horizontally extending gate 134. pivotally mounted on the members 42, 45 which allows the entire pile of sugar lumps to pass thereunder but which has suficient weight to hold i them in the proper allnement. i

The shaft 30 has two interrupted gears 140 to 141 thereon and it also carries a drive pulley 142. rllhe gears 140vand 141 are so arranged that during the portion of their travel they will rotate the gears 40 and 41 substantially one turn, while during the remainder of their travel their smooth peripheries will slide on a portion of the gears 40 and and 41 and prevent them from rotating.

The shaft 30 has a pulley 142 around which a belt 143 extends to a pulley 144 on the end of the shaft 50.

ln order to drive the remainder of the preliminary delivering belts the shaft 51 is provided with a pulley 144' around which a belt 145 passes to a pulley 146 on the shaft 52.

The shaft 53 has a pulley 147 around which a cross belt 148 passes and which eX- tends around a pulley 149 on the shaft 54, while a pulley 150 has a belt 151 extending around it and around the pulley 152 on the shaft 48. The shaft 30 also carries a pulley 153 which has a belt 154 extending around it and extending to a pulley 155 on the shaft 156, said shaft carrying a drum 157 around which the discharge belt 1.58 extends. The discharge belt 158 has a plurality of flights 159 thereon and the speed is arranged so that one flight will pass between the arms 91 and 92 each time the plate 93 is turned down.

The operation of the machine is as follows, assuming it to be in the condition illustrated in Figs. 1 and 3.

The main drive shaft 30 turns counterclockwise and pushes a loosely assembled stack of twenty dozen cubes out from under the chutes 105 to 108, this will push one carton full of cubes into the carton placed on the plate 93. At the same time the bar 120 is so positioned that it will cause the light springs carried by the shafts 110 to 112 to bear upon the lumps of sugar in the bottom of each of the tubes, holding them out of Contact with the cubes being moved away from the chutes and out of contact with the plunger 25. During this same time the arms 101 and 102 which are supported by lugs 101 and 102 will be moving to the left but without affecting the movement of the gear wheels 98 and 99, When the plunger 25 has moved one complete movement to the left it will have pushed the' pile of twenty dozen loosely assembled cubes into the dischar e chute and into a compact pile under the hinged gate 134.

During all of this time the belts 57 to 60 inclusive are moving to bring the piles of sugar thereon into an accurate position toward the arranging'flngers over the belts so as to drop the cubes into the chutes 105 to 108 inclusive.

As the shaft 30 continues to revolve the plunger 25 will be retracted until the arms 101 and 102 turn the plate 93 downwardly to bring the carton with its open side on top and into juxtaposition to the discharge carrier 158, whereupon the flights 159 will remove the carton from the arms 91 and 92, leaving the arms ready to be raised to receive another carton. At the time the arms 91 and 92 are dropped they will be disengaged from the latch 94 which will at once engage the lowermost pile of cartons and hold it in place until the return of the arms to the position shown in Figs. 1 and 3, whereupon the latch will be released and the cartons allowed to move down preparatory to receiving another charge of sugar lumps.

rl`he plunger 25moves farther to the right Figs. 1 and 3 than the edge of the plunger 33, the object being to give the plunger 33 time to operate and to attain the necessary movement of the rods 101 and 102 to operate the carton discharge plate.

`When the plunger 25 is moving to the right after it has passed beyond the position shown in Fig, 3, the gear teeth on the wheels 140 and 141 will engage the gear teeth of the wheels 40 and 41 and said teeth are so arranged as to completely turn the wheels 40 and 41 and move the plunger 33 through its complete cycle of movement before the plunger 25 returns to the position shown in Figs. 1 and 3.

When the plunger 33 rises, its first action is to strike the lug 128 on the lever 124, This will cause the bar 120 to be moved to the left F ig. 3, disengaging the springs on the shafts 110 to 112 inclusive from the lowermost lumps of sugar in the chutes 105 to 108 inclusive. This will allow the lines of sugar lumps to fall down upon the platform 33. The platform being arranged to come within less than one-half the width of any sugar lumps in the bottom of the chutes 105 to 108 inclusive. lfmmediately the platform 33 descends and carries with it a series of loosely assembled and completely arranged sugar lumps. Before it reaches the bottom of its throw the roller 127 will touch the lug 126 and cause the rod 120 to be moved to the right Figs. 1 and 3 thereby stopping the sixth lump in the line shortly before the platform 33 reaches the bottom of its movement, thereby allowingthe necessary free platform an space for the operation of removing the series o f lum s from their posltlon on the s placin them m the discharge chute. As soon as die platform 33 reaches the bottom of its throw the plunger 25 will a ain move' to the left Fi s. 1 and 3 and will c osely assemble both in t e line of its movement and longitudinally, kx means of the funnel-shaped portion of el casing sides 130 and 131, the entire series of lumps of` Y sugar piled on the platform 33 and the operation will be rapid as long as a suicient supply of lum s is placed upon the belts 57 to 60. It is to e noted that 1n case the sugar lumps are piled up irregularly upon the belts that arranging lingers and bars supportlng them will `revent them from being delivered irregu arly to the chutes'in which they are to be placed prior to assembling as a bod i Vghat I claim is as follows, but various modifications may be made in the construction shown in the drawings and above particularly described form, within the purview of my invention:

1. A lump sugar packingmachine comprising a series of chutes, means to regularly assemble the sugar cubes in said chutes, a

movable latform u n which the cubes are assemble after having passed throu h said chutes, a carton holder, means to pus a series of sugar cubes into the carton and means whereby the carton holder will automatically receive another carton when one has been filled and removed therefrom.

2. A lump sugar ac king machine comprising a series of en less conveyers, a series of arranging fingers thereover, a series o f chutes into which the sugar cubes are delivered after being arranged upon each of the conveyers, a movable platform upon which the su ar lumps are piled after having passed t rough the chutes, a carton holder and means to push a series of sugar lumps into the carton.

3. A lump sugar acking machine comprising a series of cn less conveyers adapted to arrange lumps of sugar placed indiscriminately thereon, a series of tubes into which the sugarrlumps are droppad after having been arranged upon the en ess conveyers, a movable platform upon which the sugar lumps are arranged 'after having passed through the tubes, a carton holder and means to push a series of sugar lumps off the movable table to fill the carton.

4. A lump sugar packing machine comprising a series of endless carriers, a series of arranging fingers over each carrier, a plurality vof chutes into which the sugar lumps are dropped after leaving the carriers, a vertically movable table upon which the sugar lumps are placed after having passed through the chutes, means to hold the bottom lump of-sugar in each chute during certain movements of the supporting table, a carton holder and a plun er for pushing a series of sugar lumps o the supportlng table into the carton.

5.Y A lump 'sugar packing machine comprising a series of carriers, a series of chutes to which the carriers deliver lumps of sugar, an intermittently movable table upon which the lumps of sugar arev delivered from the chutes,.means to hold the lowermost lumps of sugar in the chute during a portion of the movement of said table and means to intermittently deliver a ,series of sugar lumps to a carton after they have been placed upon said table in a regular arrangement.

6. A lump sugar packing machine comprising a series of endless carriers, chutes to which the carriers deliver lumps of sugar, an intermittently vertical movable table to which the sugar lumps are delivered from the chutes, means to hold the lowermost lumps of sugar in the chutes during a portion ofthe movement of said table and a horizontally movable plunger adapted to push a series of arranged lum s into a carton. -90

7. A lump su ar pac 'ng machine comprising a plurality of chutes in which the sugar lumps are arranged, a vertically movab e table, means operated by the table to hold the lumps in the chute during a portion of this movement and to release the lumps of sugar durin another portion of the table movements an a horizontally movable plunger adapted to move a series of arranged sugar lumps into a carton and off the yvertically movable table. .n

8. A lump sugar packing machine comprising a series of endless-carriers, a plural- 1ty of fingers thereover adapted to arrange a ser-ies of sugar lumps, chutes into which thel sugar lumps are delivered' from said carriers, a vertically movable table upon which the sugar lumps are delivered from the chutes, means on the lower ends of the chutes to hold `the lowermost sugar lumps in the chute during a portion of the movement vof the table, a horizontally movable Vplunger adapted to push the pile of arranged lumps off the table into the carton and means operated by saidl plunger to discharge 115` the loaded carton and in position to be filled.

9. A cube sugar packing machine comprising 'a series of endless carriers, chutes to which the endless carriers deliver the sugar cubes, means at the lower end of the chutes -to hold the sugar cubes from falling through, a vertically movable table under the chutes to receive the sugar cubes from the chutes, means operated by said table near the top of its movement to release the sugar cubes in the chutes and permit them to move downwardl with the downward movement of said ta le and a horizontally movable plunger adapted to push the sugar place another carton ree/mae cubes 0H the vertically movable table into a carton.

10. A cube sugar packing machine comprising a series of endless carriers, a series of arranged fingers over each carrier, a plurality of chutes into which the sugar lumps are dropped after leaving the carriers, a vertically movable table upon which the sugar lumps are placed after having passed through the chutes, means operated by said table to hold the bottom lump in each chute during certain movements of the supporting table, a horizontally movable plunger adapted to push the sugar cubes od the vertically movable table and into a carton, means to discharge the lled carton from the machine and means to place a fresh carton in position to receive a charge of sugar lumps when one carton has been discharged.

l1. A cube sugar packing machine comprising means to arrange the sugar cubes, a series of vertically extending tubes into which the arranged cubes are dropped, a vertically movable table under the tubes to receive the arranged sugar cubes, means to hold the sugar cubes in the tubes during a portion of the movement of said table and a horizontally movable plunger adapted to push the seriesv of lumps oil' the vertically movable table and into a carton, said plunger having a greater movement than the depth of the carton to make up for the space between the series of sugar lumps in their preliminary arrangement upon the vertically movable table.

12. A cube sugar packing machine comprising a series of endless carriers, a series of vertical chutes into which the carriers are adapted to dump sugar cubes in an arranged condition, means at the bottom of the chutes to hold a line of su ar cubes therein, a vertically movable tabe upon which the cubes are arranged after leaving the chutes and a tunnel shaped chute through which the cubes are moved after leaving said table to bring the cubes together endwise of the packa e to be formed and a plunger adapted to pus a series of sugar cubes through said. chute.

13. A cube sugar packing machine oomprising a frame work carrying a plurality of cube sugar arranging belts, a plurality of l chutes into which the sugar cubes are dumped, a vertically movable table adapted to receive the sugar cubes after they have passed through the chutes, means operated by said table near the top of its stroke to release the lovvermost cube in the chute, means operated by the table to stop the lowermost cube in the chutes near the bottom of its stroke, a horizontally movable plunger adapted to push a series of sugar lumps into a carton oil said table, a carton holding bracket and means operated by said plunger to lower the carton holding bracket with a carton when it has been filled.

14. A cube sugar packing machine comprising a frame, a plurality of vertical chutes carried thereby, a vertically movable table under the chutes to receive sugar cubes therefrom, means to push the sugar cubes off the table into a carton, a bracket for holding the cartons in position to be illed, a chute for holding a series of cartons, a latch to hold the lowermost carton in said chute and means on the carton holding bracket for releasing said latch each time the carton holding bracket is raised whereby a fresh carton is dropped into position to be filled.

ln testimony whereof, ll have hereunto set my hand this 30th day of September A. D.

GllUSEPPE llACUBlTll. 

